Product Information

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Format: DRM Protected ePubVendor: Tyndale Momentum

Publication Date: 2011ISBN-13: 9781414366067

Publisher's Description

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If you loved The Purpose-Driven Life and One Month to Live, then youll love The Jesus Experiment. Popular author and speaker Bill Perkins challenges you to spend twelve weeks discovering what it really means to live like Jesus. More than a book, its an invitation for you to try becoming like him in your feelings, thoughts, words, and deeds. Each week, youll focus on a different aspect of Jesus life, including how he faced his fears, how he talked with God, and how he helped others. As you examine your own life in light of the Lords, youll be amazed at how your mind and heart will change to more closely reflect his.

ChristianBookPreviews.com

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In The Jesus Experiment, Bill Perkins puts to the test Jesus' promise to provide his followers with "a rich and satisfying life" (John 10:10, NLT). Many Christians would admit that despite their devotion to God, their lives remain unsatisfying. Perkins suggests this is because we continually seek fulfillment in the wrong places. He believes the abundant life can only be found when we model our lives after the example of Jesus. The purpose of The Jesus Experiment is to teach Christians how to abide continually in Christ as John 15:4 instructs: "Abide in me, and I in you" (ESV). Once that relationship is established, we can examine what Jesus felt, thought, said, and did in various situations, and then compare our own responses in similar circumstances.

One chapter at a time, Perkins walks us through how Jesus approached and responded to the issues of prayer, fear, temptation, Christian purpose, time management, service, children, and difficult people. The chapters resemble in-depth weekly devotions that are meant to be completed throughout a 12-week period. At the end of each topic, there is an interactive Q&A section to work through based on the readers experiences during the past week. Perkins first tested the Jesus Experiment on himself and found that it changed not only him but also the people he was closest to.

What impressed me most about this book was that it had very practical applications for daily life. The writing style is not lofty or overly intellectual, and Perkins speaks to his readers as peers. He is genuine in his acknowledgement of his own human weakness and consistently uses fitting anecdotes from his personal life to illustrate his points. In fact, throughout the book he uses poignant and visual metaphors that, when combined with his sense of humor, bring the writing to life.

It is important to know, however, that this book is based on the assumption that Jesus chose to model the perfect Christian life for us by relying on his Father for guidance and empowerment, rather than his own divinity, while he was here on Earth. This would mean that Christians, too, can live a Jesus-like life if they follow his example and rely on the Father in all circumstances. This is not to say that they will no longer struggle with sin, but rather that their thoughts and actions will increasingly resemble those of Christ. Personally, this concept helped me to recognize more fully the humanity of Jesus, as well as his divinity.

The Jesus Experiment is meant to be not only read but also lived. Whereas its insights can be appreciated even after a quick reading, it will have very little permanent impact unless the truths being taught are also internalized. This journey requires time, effort, self-reflection, and commitment, and readers should be prepared for that contribution before they pick up the book. However, as it says in John 15:11, "These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full" (ESV). Perkins' teaching is applicable for readers of all ages and I enthusiastically recommend this book for anyone interested in developing a life of faith.  Andrea Sanders, www.ChristianBookPreviews.com

Following a 12 week course this book gives guidelines to the some of the following topics: how to follow Jesus in prayer, procrastination, Jesus loved difficult people, dealing with temptation and how to break the cycle, what Jesus said, how he must have felt and the temptations he faced and so many more! The book also contains the stories and experiences of others. I especially loved "A Christmas Story".

Before I started reading The Jesus Experiment I admit I did not know what the book would entail, but upon reading was pleasantly surprised as to how the book could change a person's thinking. Especially helpful for me was what Jesus did, thought and felt and the opinions of the author and realized how my shortcomings can affect my life and those around me. Many inspiring stories are written (the author's included) that can be inspirations to us all. Well written, well done, highly recommend and a must for every Christian library! I was inspired and challenged in my faith.

The Jesus Experiment, by Bill Perkins, is subtitled: What Happens when you Follow in His Footsteps. An intriguing title so I was happy to begin reading it. It is a book that challenges against the status quo of society and as I read it, I started to feel a bit guilty of certain things and failings in my life. I think this would be an excellent book to read in a community group or a group where you can honestly discuss life and challenge each other to live and follow Jesus and what that means today.

Prior to this book I've read Perkins' Six Rules Every Man Must Break and while it also was a good book, I think I prefer this one.

Most of us are familiar with the coined phrase "WWJD?" which stands for What Would Jesus Do? This particular phrase took on lots of popularity a few years ago and while it helped teach us to think about how Jesus would react to everyday situations and feelings we encounter in life. Bill Perkins' book The Jesus Experiment: What Happens When You Follow in His Footsteps?" is much more than an answer to the WWJD question.

Bill Perkins gives us an incredible opportunity to discover for ourselves whether Christ's simple promise is true...that Jesus Christ gives a rich and satisfying life to those who follow Him (John 10:10). He gives us the simple tools that will help us discover how to become more like Jesus in our faith, character and relationships in this beautifully written book. This book and accompanying 12 week study will take us on a journey to the abundant life we've always wanted.

Through the course of the 12 week study you will discover what Jesus did in private (prayer, facing fears, overcoming evil), what He did in public (mission-minded, activities, unexpectedly helping others) and what He did with people (served status seekers, gave hope, blessed children, loved difficult people). At the end of each chapter, you are challenged to "live out" the Jesus experiment in your everyday life through self-evaluating exercises and thought-provoking questions. I have to admit, that I thought a couple of the chapters were a little too drawn out (long-winded) but overall the content and material are presented in wonderful ways. This book would also be excellent to do with your spouse, Sunday school class or small group Bible study. Lots of extra materials and resources can be found here including sermons, coaching tips, power point presentations and more.

John 10:10 promises "Jesus Christ gives a rich and satisfying life to those who follow him." So, why aren't more Christians living "rich and satisfying" lives? What does it really mean to follow Christ? Author Bill Perkins began the Jesus Experiment with these questions in mind. This 12-week journey will draw you into God's word and put your life into focus through the lens of scripture. Do you handle day-to-day situations life Jesus did?

Since this was a book I had to review in a timely manner, I was not able to do the full 12-week journey the way it was meant to be done, but I still got a lot out of it and I plan to go through the Jesus Experiment fully in the next few months. Using scripture, and some of his own personal stories as examples, Bill Perkins opens up ways for us to discover who we are at our core. How we behave when people are watching and when no one is around. You do one short chapter per week. At the end of each chapter is a challenge and some questions to help you focus on how you feel, think, speak and act in certain situations. You are then asked to compare yourself to Jesus. How did Jesus feel, think, speak and act in those situations? Any person who goes into this experiment honestly should find it an eye-opening experience that brings you closer to God.

I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes from Tyndale.